Immigration activist staves off deportation for now

Hundreds of supporters march in New York as immigration activist Ravi Ragbir attends his annual meeting with immigration authorities. Such meetings have become an ordeal for many migrants, as what was previously often a formality now holds a real possibility of deportation under President Trump. Ragbir was released on this occasion.
Video provided by AFP
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Ravi Ragbir, center, a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago and executive director of the New Sanctuary Coalition of New York City, speaks during a press conference held on his behalf, as he fights deportation Wednesday Jan. 31, 2018, at New York City Hall.(Photo: Bebeto Matthews, AP)

NEW YORK — An immigration activist whose long battle over deportation has drawn support from Democratic politicians in New York won't have to leave country before a First Amendment lawsuit is heard.

Ravi Ragbir, a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago who leads the New Sanctuary Coalition of New York City, a coalition of 150 faith-based pro-immigrant groups, says in a lawsuit that he and other activists have been wrongly targeted by immigration officials in an effort by the federal government to silence dissent.

"These activists have been surveilled, intimidated, harassed and detained, their homes raided, many have been plucked off the street in broad daylight, and some have even been deported," the lawsuit read.

Ragbir was taken into custody on Jan. 11 after a routine check-in with immigration officials in New York. He previously served 30 months in prison for wire fraud because of work he did for a crooked mortgage company. He said he has been given a deportation order for Feb. 10, but has at least one pending court appeal before then.

He was released last week after a federal ruled he hadn't been given enough time to say goodbye to his family. That judge, U.S. District Judge Katherine B. Forrest, expressed "grave concern" over allegations he was targeted for deportation because of his political activities.

The week before his arrest, another leader of the New Sanctuary Coalition, Jean Montrevil, was arrested in the street and deported to Haiti. Montrevil was sentenced to an 11-year prison sentence for selling cocaine.

U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement last month also detained the husband of an immigrant activist in Boulder, Colorado, who got media attention after seeking sanctuary from deportation in a church.

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